Geoff Petrie has been the GM of the Sacramento Kings since 1994, one of the longest tenures in the league. There have been good times (the Chris Webber era contenders) but he also built the current mismatched roster that has struggled for several seasons. A lot of where the Kings are right now falls on him.

The Maloofs, who own the Sacramento Kings, have recently considered relieving longtime president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie of his position, multiple sources have told Sactown Royalty and SBNation.com. No move to replace Petrie, who has been the team’s only personnel boss for the entirety of the Maloofs’ ownership of the Kings, is imminent, but the family has, according to sources, reached out to a management agent within the past two weeks with eyes on lining up a successor.

This really should not come as a terrible surprise, Petrie is the guy buying the ingredients in Sacramento, if it’s a bad dish he has to take some blame. He is the guy who has hired Eric Musselman, Regie Theus and Paul Westphal in succession.

But it’s more complex than just axing him.

On one side is the question of where the team will be located and if the Maloofs role will change. The city of Sacramento has until March 1 to present a financing plan for a new arena that meets with the approval of the other NBA owners. If not, you can expect the Anaheim Kings next year. Whether the team stays or goes, there could be new investors (if not outright owners) of the team coming. Things are fluid.

There is also the question of what direction the Kings might want to go next. Which could leave coach Keith Smart as a lame duck, again. A new GM after all this time would be a radical culture shock to the organization, and while that is not necessarily bad it is usually messy.

I don’t remember playing tonight. I didn’t play. Guys get a lot of money to be ready to play. No Knute Rockne speeches. It’s your job. If you’re a plumber and you don’t do your job, you don’t get any work. I don’t think a plumber needs a pep talk. If a doctor botches operations, he’s not a doctor anymore. If you’re a basketball player, you come ready. It’s called maturity. It’s your job.

Like it or not, motivation is part of an NBA coach’s job.

But that’s also precisely what Popovich is doing.

His credentials dwarf any other coach’s. He can play to his own ego and absolve himself of responsibility – and players will seek to please him. His years of success have earned him the ability to motivate this way, a method no other coach could use without alienating his team.

So, why not hold Motiejunas to what became a four-year, $31 million offer sheet once matched? Houston got something in return – a later trigger date on guaranteeing Motiejunas’ 2017-18 salary. Originally, that decision had to be made March 1 – which would’ve meant dropping Motiejunas from the team this season to prevent his salary from counting next season. Now, the Rockets can make that call in July, after this season is complete.

The following two Julys, Houston will also have a choice on guaranteeing Motiejunas’ upcoming salary or dropping him.

Essentially, Motiejunas is signing the most lucrative Hinkie Special in NBA history. If he plays well and stays healthy, the Rockets have Motiejunas at an affordable rate. If he struggles or his back injuries flare up, they can drop him with little to no penalty.

After they backed themselves into this corner, Motiejunas and his agent, B.J. Armstrong, didn’t do so bad. Considering the similarity between this contract and the Nets’ original offer sheet, it seems Houston helped Armstrong save face after a bungled free agency (which is easier to accept when you’re adding a talented reserve to a formidable team).

But for how little is guaranteed and how much control the Rockets hold over the next four years, wouldn’t Motiejunas have been better off accepting the $4,433,683 qualifying offer?

This means Motiejunas can’t sign with the Nets, who signed him to the original offer sheet, for one year.

I bet it also means Motiejunas and Houston have agreed to a new contract. Otherwise, why release him from the offer sheet? The Rockets would be giving up a tremendous amount of leverage out of the goodness of their hearts – unless this is just a prelude to a new deal with Houston.